Biography

Amanda Ketchum is a junior at Central Michigan University, working toward her Bachelor’s degree in BK to 3rd grade and special education. During this time as a student, she has excelled in her classwork, as well as became a member of Phi Sigma Pi. She is an in-home high-quality childcare provider. Her facility has been in operation for eight years, and has received many accolades during this time. Since 2017 she has maintained the highest quality level through Great Start to Quality in Michigan. She is also a Family Childcare Partner with the Early Head Start program. Through this partnership, she has learned the importance and value of high quality education for young children, as well as the importance of advocating for more facilities to become high quality especially in the community.

Beyond her work for the past eight years, Amanda has also had experience as a paraprofessional for a K-2 special education classroom, as well as working as a paraprofessional for the middle school. Before this, she has spent time in other childcare facilities for many years. On top of being a student and a small business owner, Amanda is a mother to two teenagers, who have had the first hand experience of witnessing how valuable a childcare facility is to the community. The impact of her childcare has not only taught the value of hard work and dedication, it has shown her children the value of community and working together for the greater good. Alongside these very important roles, Amanda is also a member of the Family Childcare Network for Southern Michigan. In this capacity, she has networked with other in-home providers to explain the importance of high quality education, and the value in letting others know that we are not just babysitters. Amanda is creative, passionate, dedicated, and a leader in raising awareness for the importance of early childcare programs and what they mean for the future of our society. She is devoted to helping others and advocating for better wages in the field, safe high quality environments, as well as being a voice for those that can’t advocate for themselves. 

Amanda Ketchum: Candidate Statement 1
Amanda Ketchum: Candidate Statement 2

Briefly describe your relevant experience in governance and your understanding of fiduciary duties and fiscal responsibilities. How have you applied these principles in previous positions or organizations, and how do you plan to contribute to the effectiveness and financial stewardship of our Board? 

My relevant experience in governance is collaborating with other childcare businesses within our Early Head Start program to make sure that we are in compliance, as well as offer ideas into how we can work more efficiently. I have helped new providers coming into our community get started, as well as advocating for others during their times of need. In this partnership of eight years, we have worked closely with our community and our community partners to help children and families with many different needs. 

In my role as a small business owner, I am responsible for ensuring that my employees are paid fairly, as well as tracking business expenses accurately and in a timely manner. During times of receiving grants, or writing for grants, I closely monitor and track expenses to report later on. In our role with Early Head Start, I track our finances, as well as budget, to ensure that our operation continues to run smoothly, as well as efficiently.  

As my role as an assistant manager of a camping resort for many years, my duties included receiving payments for camping for all guests. I was also responsible for billing annuals monthly for electricity. During each season, I was tasked with making sure our accounts payable was running smoothly and vendors were being paid in a timely manner. I would check reports and detail any discrepancies, and it was my duty to follow up on them. I was also tasked with operating the office's budget for the fiscal year. It was also my duty to make sure deposits made it to the bank as well as reconciling petty cash.  

I will use this knowledge of running and operating a small business, having experiences with finances, and being an effective manager, to contribute to following the budget for NAEYC as well as using my platform to encourage others the importance of charitable giving to NAEYC’s mission. I will also be effective in making conscious choices about NAEYC’s spending and management of financial resources. With my experience of creating contracts and policies, I believe I am well rounded in fiduciary operations.